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Michigan may see Foxconn windfall

The windfall that recently came to Wisconsin in the form of a $10 billion Foxconn manufacturing plant may soon come to the neighboring state of Michigan. Foxconn Chairman Terry Gou, according to media reports out of China, said that the Taiwanese company may open a plant in Michigan to research new technologies such as self-driving vehicles. Michigan’s Republican governor, Rick Snyder, is on a 10-day junket through China where he is trying to drum up business for the Mitten State He told AP on Monday that that he is confident that there is a “strong possibility” that Foxconn may still be considering a Michigan location.

Snyder said that Gou invited him to dinner and meetings, while he may also tour Foxconn’s huge manufacturing facility in Shenzhen, which employs approximately 20,000 persons near Hong Kong. Gou and Snyder held discussions about autonomous vehicles, and advanced manufacturing. Snyder said that Foxconn, as are many companies in Michigan, is highly advanced in tooling, machinery and robotics. However, Foxconn does not yet have a big footprint in the US in those sectors. "We had very healthy, very good discussions about Michigan's strengths and how it could be very good for Foxconn to be present in Michigan in some fashion. What it is, has yet to be determined," he said.

Michigan is home to General Motors, Ford Motor Co, and Fiat Chrysler, would be the second U.S. location for Foxconn. Foxconn recently announced plans to build a massive screen display plant in Wisconsin that will initially employ 3,000 persons but expand later to 13,000.

President Donald Trump heralded the announcement of the Foxconn plant in Wisconsin as an example of his administration's success at negotiation.